Commentary: Roger Taney, Thurgood Marshall and why history, symbols matter

Amid a heightened reexamination in recent years of how slavery and systemic racism have shaped the history and identity of the United States, the country has been forced to reckon with how it represents, honors or memorializes historic figures and events. One of the most prominent Marylanders in U.S. history has been at the center of this kind of reckoning. President Joe Biden at the end of 2022 signed a bill directing that a bust of Roger B. Taney, the fifth U.S. chief justice, be removed from the U.S. Capitol. The measure directs Congress to remove Taney’s bust within 45 days of Biden signing it into law, which he did on Dec, 27. It also says Congress must replace it with one of Thurgood Marshall, the first Black Supreme Court justice and another Marylander who changed the course of U.S. history.